Booz Allen takes a moment to highlight insights from Senior Vice President Linda Asher and a group of panelists discussing psychological safety. Linda heads Booz Allen’s pricing, procurement, and contracts team and serves as the executive sponsor for the firm’s Pride Community.
People sometimes think about psychological safety as feeling comfortable or being in an environment with no conflict. But the true definition is more complex. Dr. Amy Edmondson, the Harvard Business School professor who coined the term, describes it as “the belief that you can speak up without risk of punishment or humiliation.”
Those who feel psychologically safe are more likely to take risks, express their ideas, and be their full self at work, ultimately reaching higher. In turn, psychologically safe working environments experience less turnover, more productivity, more innovation, and increased diversity.
However, a July 2021 study by Workhuman found that just 26% of workers felt psychologically safe during the pandemic.
How can leadership teams better evaluate and elevate employees’ levels of psychological safety? And how do hybrid work environments affect psychological safety?
Panelists shared their stories about times they felt an absence of psychological safety. One panelist feared showing vulnerability as the only woman on a naval assignment. Another hesitated to ask for special accommodations for a disability until he was well into his career.
They also shared stories of what psychological safety looks like and how it makes a difference. For Linda, it was feeling encouraged and supported during a career- and life-changing move.
“I was relocating my family from the Washington, DC, area up to New Jersey for a professional opportunity,” she recalled. “There were some really candid conversations with folks on both ends of the relocation and a lot of questions and curiosity. The relationships built and the institutional trust factor enabled me to make that kind of life change, and it was truly a rewarding chapter in life both professionally and personally.”
To create such relationship-building and trust in the workplace, panelists advised:
Psychological safety is also about the overall environment and culture in which sensitive or important conversations take place.
As the pandemic introduced blurred lines between work and life, “we invited colleagues into our homes,” in Linda’s words, which serves as an important reminder of our employees’ lives and responsibilities that exist outside of professional roles: caring for parents or children, adopting a pet, pursuing a degree. “As leaders, we need to be mindful and open to creating space and giving people that space and flexibility,” Linda said. “Check in and adjust—I think this really speaks to the future of work.”
